Due to the highly anticipated India-Pakistan World Cup Cricket match at the city’s Motera stadium on October 15, airfares to Ahmedabad have increased substantially, sometimes by as much as 350% from large cities. Bookings for hotels and transport have already started to be made for the match by cricket enthusiasts, VVIPs, and sponsors.
Even when made three months in advance on July 15, a round-trip nonstop ticket from Chennai to Ahmedabad now costs an astounding Rs 45,425 per person. According to sources in the travel sector, this would ordinarily cost about Rs 10,000 for a roundtrip.
India will host the ICC Cricket World Cup from October 5 to November 19. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will host the first game, the championship game, and the contest between India and Pakistan.
Even when made far in advance, tickets to Ahmedabad from major cities have soared for October 14–16 because to the anticipated high demand on match days. Even close-by locations like Delhi and Mumbai have seen fare rises of 339 and 203%, respectively, for same days.
The rise in inbound airfares to Ahmedabad as a result of the increased demand on game days was emphasized by Virendra Shah, chairman of the Travel Agents’ Association of India (TAAI). “While the first and last match days haven’t attracted much attention, the India-Pakistan encounter is the centre of a lot of hype. Overall, there are a lot of requests for hotel reservations and match tickets in Ahmedabad, the man said.
The monetary burden is increased by the much higher cost of flights during peak times out of large cities. For the days of the matches, hotels in Ahmedabad are already at high occupancy rates. Major five-star hotels have sold out more than 60% of their inventory for the match days, according to a city-based hotelier. inquiries from corporate entities, VVIPs, and cricket fan groups keep coming in.
